Soul Possession
|Season = 6 |Antagonist = Ares |Setting = USA |In-Universe Date = 2001 |Production # = V1423 |Filming Dates = January 2001 |Original Air-Date = |Written By = Melissa Blake |Story By = |Teleplay By = |Directed By = Josh Becker |Order in Series = 132 of 134 |Order in Season = 20 of 22 |Order in Franchise= 301 of 304 |Prev Episode in Series = "Many Happy Returns" |Next Episode in Series = "A Friend in Need Part I" |Prev Episode in Franchise = "Many Happy Returns" |Next Episode in Franchise = "A Friend in Need Part I" |title cap image = }} In modern-day, a scroll is found in the Ionian Sea which depicts the events that happened between Xena's return from Siberia and reuniting with Gabrielle in Potedia. It also contains a contract connecting Xena's soul to Ares' possession, which prompts the modern day incarnations of Xena, Gabrielle and Joxer (Harry O'Casey, Mattie Merrill and Annie Day, respectively) to attend the unravelling of the scroll at the C.H.A.K.R.A.M. facility. Summary and Joxer hide a mysterious scroll...]] Approaching the edge of a cliff, Joxer takes a scroll from Xena and tries to tear it up, but can not. Xena reminds Joxer that the scroll is a binding contract in every sense of the word and suggests that they hide it from Ares, Disguising the scroll, Joxer turns it over to Xena, who leaps off the cliff holding it. Jumping to the present, a scuba diver surfaces with the scroll. Days later, a press conference titled "CHAKRAM: Center for the Historical Accuracy of Key Research in Ancient Mythology," headed by Roxanne Fields and Dr. Frederick Delaney begins. The media goes crazy as Dr. Delaney holds up the scroll discovered by the diver, which chronicles the life of Xena. and Ares]] In the midst of the excitement, two Xena fans burst into the auditorium, convinced that the scroll means there will be new Xena episodes including a 7th season. Guards drag the two fans out and Dr. Delaney resumes explaining that this scroll includes a contract between Xena and Ares which proves that the two were married sometime after Gabrielle's daughter, Hope, perished in a lava pit in Sacrifice II. Positive that this scroll accounts for the events that occurred after Xena saw a vision that Gabrielle was still alive in Adventures in the Sin Trade II, Dr. Delaney begins reading from the ancient document. doesn't believe Xena's Vision]] In the past, Xena finds Joxer drunk in a local tavern and proclaims that she had a vision that Gabrielle is alive. She becomes annoyed, however, when he points out the impossibility of Gabrielle surviving her fall. Back at the press conference, Annie from Deja Vu All Over Again interrupts Dr. Delaney, informing him that his analysis is wrong. The two fans, who have snuck back in, recognize Annie as the woman who was Joxer in a past life and ask what happened to her boyfriend, Harry, after discovering that he was Xena in a past life. She tells them that he married her past-life counselor, Mattie, who was Gabrielle in a past life. proposes to Xena]] Annie's version of the past as Joxer now springs to life. He and Xena are headed to the temple where Gabrielle disappeared when Joxer suddenly reveals that he's keeping a record of their lives as a tribute to Gabrielle. Confident that Gabrielle is alive, Xena strays from Joxer for a moment when Ares suddenly pops in and offers his powers to help Xena find her friend. Xena is shocked when he gets on one knee and proposes that they marry in front of the Fates which would make their bond eternal and unbreakable. Worried that Ares wants to bring Gabrielle back only to kill her again, Xena attacks him and an all-out battle ensues. agrees to marry Ares in exchange for Gabrielle's whereabouts]] That night, Xena is awakened by Gabrielle's voice, but quickly realizes that it's Joxer impersonating her. Ares then appears and Xena accepts his proposal requesting that the ceremony take place at the site of Gabrielle's death. and Mattie Merrill return from a holiday to Greece]] In the present once again, Mattie and Harry from Deja Vu All Over Again drive along reminiscing about their recent honeymoon and past lives as Xena and Gabrielle. Mattie checks the mail and learns of the C.H.A.K.R. A.M. press conference which is happening this day. Harry pulls a u-turn and heads to the auditorium. Upon their arrival, they nervously confront Annie, telling her that there's a good chance Ares will show up. At the same time, an ominous figure on a motorcycle zooms by a wooded road and you see some flowers died off. Back in the past, Joxer enters Xena's chamber and helps her prepare for her wedding. The Fates assemble themselves and the ceremony begins, but when it comes time for Xena to say "I do," she bolts towards the lava pit and jumps. Ares follows her off the cliff and appears beneath her, catching her. In the woods, Xena explains to Ares that she suddenly realized that he had to have saved Gabrielle's life when she and Hope fell into the pit in order to use it later as a bargaining chip. Angry that Xena has figured out his scheme, Ares offers a new deal in which he will spare Gabrielle's soul in exchange for Xena's. Agreeing, a scroll appears in Ares hand which Xena signs. Placing the scroll in his back pocket, he tells her that he has released Gabrielle. Xena kisses him, secretly lifting the scroll in the process and takes off in search of her friend. switches the souls of Annie and Harry]] As Dr. Delaney wraps up the story, the mystery motorcyclist, who is in fact Ares, enters the conference, but Mattie and Annie block his path. Harry calls to Ares just as the god of war snatches the scroll from Dr. Delaney and aligns his thumb with the print on the document, knocking Harry to the ground. This causes Xena's spirit to appear and as it lingers above Harry's limp body, Mattie grabs a staff from the stage and charges Ares. destroys the contract by accident]] Meanwhile, Ares has just used magic to pull Joxer's spirit out of Annie and replace it with Xena's. Unexpectedly, Annie morphs into Xena and lunges at Ares. Xena picks the scroll up from the floor and tucks it inside her shirt and as Ares shoots fireballs at her, finally Xena stands as as Ares toss another fireball she hold out the scroll. Ares fumes as he watches his scroll disintegrate and Xena is reunited with Gabrielle and Joxer. Disclaimer :Joxer's process of elimination was harmed during the making of this motion picture. Gallery File:SP_gallery_1.jpg|Xena and Joxer hide a mysterious scroll... File:SP_gallery_2.jpg|...that is found over 2000 years later, revealing a marriage between Xena and Ares File:SP_gallery_3.jpg|Joxer doesn't believe Xena's Vision File:SP_gallery_4.jpg|Ares proposes to Xena File:SP_gallery_5.jpg|Harry O'Casey and Mattie Merrill return from a holiday to Greece File:SP_gallery_6.jpg|Xena agrees to marry Ares in exchange for Gabrielle's whereabouts File:SP_gallery_7.jpg|Joxer and Meg fail to convince Ares to stop his marriage to Xena File:SP_gallery_8.jpg|Xena attempts to marry Ares in front of the three Fates... File:SP_gallery_9.jpg|...but jumps into the lava pit to test Ares instead File:SP_gallery_10.jpg|Ares saves Xena from falling into the pit File:SP_gallery_11.jpg|Xena exchanges her soul for Gabrielle's... File:SP_gallery_12.jpg|...and then steals the contract File:SP_gallery_13.jpg|Ares shows up at the C.H.A.K.R.A.M. conference to renew the contract File:SP_gallery_14.jpg|Ares switches the souls of Annie and Harry File:SP_gallery_15.jpg|"Un-friggin-believable!" Ares destroys the contract by accident Background Information Behind the Scenes *Although Barb Binder is a made-up character, "Whoosh!" is a real fansite. The role was also a cameo appearance by Carly Binding, a New Zealand singer and former member of the girl group TrueBliss. *Although Ares had been sporting a much shorter hairstyle for some time by the time season six began, the production team was careful to give him the same style as seen in season three. *Kevin Smith died approximately nine months after this episode aired, a week after suffering injuries in a fall on a movie set in China. *Jennifer Rucker, who plays Fan 2 in this episode, had previously appeared in "Send in the Clones" as Police Officer 1 and "Here She Comes... Miss Amphipolis" as Miss Parnassus. *The ditty that Meg sings for Ares was a nonsense song that Lucy made up to sing to her son Julius. *This is the 5th and final "uber" episode of . Key Events *This episode marks the final appearance of Joxer and it is reassuring to know his spirit survives in the future along with Xena and Gabrielle. *This episode marks the final appearance of Ares. *This episode marks the final appearance of Meg. *This episode marks the final appearance of Annie Day. *This episode marks the final appearance of Harry O'Casey. *This episode marks the final appearance of Mattie Merrill. *This episode marks the final appearance of the Three Fates. *This episode marks the final appearance of the dark Chakram. *This episode marks the mention (on-screen) of the show's creator Rob Tapert. *This episode marks the final mention of the Dahak/Hope storyline (and subsequently the mentions of Alti, Xena's Vision, the Lava Pit and Dahak and Hope themselves. *This episode is the final one to be set in modern times. *Technically, Gabrielle doesn't appear in this episode at the beginning, unless you include the archive footage shown and Mattie's appearance but when Gabrielle's memories within Mattie she is back to her old self. *This episode is the final one to be directed by Josh Becker. Goofs *This episode contradicts the explanation given in "A Family Affair" for how Gabrielle and Hope survived falling down the pit. In that episode, it was stated it was because of Dahak. In this episode, it is stated it was because of Ares. *In most of the scenes set in the past, Xena is seen with her balanced Chakram, despite not having recieved it by this point. However, in some scenes, she is seen to have the dark Chakram. *After Ares saves Xena from dying in the lava pit, he says that Gabrielle offered her soul to him in order for him to save Hope. That makes no sense, as Gabrielle wanted Hope dead at that time and only saved her because The Fates would have cut Xena's life thread if Xena had killed Hope. Trivia *The MC at the C.H.A.K.R.A.M. event mentions that they had tried to book Bruce Campbell, the actor who played Autolycus. Memorable Quotations "Did you schedule any celebrity appearances?" "Well, we contacted Bruce Campbell, but he was too much money." :–'MC' and Frederick Delaney Links and References Guest Stars Modern Day * Carly Binding as Barb Binder * Ted Raimi as Harry O'Casey * Kevin Smith as Ares * Lucy Lawless as Annie Day * Renee O'Connor as Mattie Merrill * Michael Saccente as Frederick Delaney * Lucy Briant as Roxanne Fields * Anne Nordhaus as Fan #1 * Jennifer Rucker as Fan #2 * Campbell Cooley as Random Reporter Lost Scroll * Ted Raimi as Joxer * Kevin Smith as Ares * Lucy Lawless as Meg References People *Alti *Doug *Hope *Molly Polonius *Tapert, Rob Gods *Ares Places *Africa *Athens *Europe *Ionian Sea *Nile Other Season Navigation de:Besessene Seelen Category:Parody_Episodes Category:Episodes not set in Greece Category:Modern setting episodes Category:XWP Season 6 episodes Category:Episodes Featuring Ares Category:Episodes Featuring Joxer